Rapid Transit

[Dr Awesomesauce]

I need a map...

[CaptainKirk]

Originally Posted by Jon Dalton

The first part makes a lot of sense. Planning for LRT started a long time ago and there was a lot of focus on integrating with the streetscape of King St which at the time needed a lot of help. The economic uplift argument seemed to take priority over concerns about speed and efficiency. Now there are not many vacant stores and new projects like the Connaught are underway. Main Street on the other hand has little to lose from the construction hassles and as far as street vibrancy goes it has nowhere to go but up.

What you say is true but for a small stretch that is downtown. The majority of the eastern portion og King St could uses that uplift (and Main too, east of the delta)

That's why the one way portion of Main should be converted to two way. it's got too many lanes as it is. It's perfect for "helping out" with car traffic along King when LRT tracks get laid.

[Dr Awesomesauce]

^That's a valid point about making that part Main two way to take the pressure off King.

And, yeah, that section of King (east of Wellington) is really, really poor. Perhaps it could be rejuvenated, in part, by making it two-way and adding bike lanes etc. rather than having LRT run on it but, yeah, a good point regardless.

I don't think any two people will ever agree on the precise route LRT should take through the city. I guess we should just be thankful we're getting it and not worry too much about the minutiae of it all...

[old]

I used to agree that it should be along king street - though now i do agree with the main street idea - mainly because Main St. has a lot of room to grow, and should, while king would be better suited to keep to its older character and will be more likely to improve based on its building stock.

I don't think branching out to the go station as part of the B-Line is a good idea. I don't see why we couldn't have a dedicated single-line rail car that blasts back and forth between a B-line terminal and the West harbour (could also include Hunter). It's such a short distance that i don't see why we'd need two separate tracks, this is just more construction, more space required, more battling with traffic, etc.) Plus you basically only have to dedicate one transit medium/vehicle. You could also make provisions to integrate it into a future A-line.

It just seems like the most cost effective solution to the issue of connection to West Harbour, without hindering the effectiveness of the crosstown route. The B Line which would lose a lot of day-to-day momentum to divert to a place that most people probably won't need to be going other than the commuting hours. And we're ideally building the A-Line someday.

[eatboots]

Originally Posted by Dr Awesomesauce

And, yeah, that section of King (east of Wellington) is really, really poor. Perhaps it could be rejuvenated, in part, by making it two-way and adding bike lanes etc. rather than having LRT run on it but, yeah, a good point regardless.

There is lots of potential on King from Wellington right up to Wentworth, however Wentworth to Sandford/Arthur is going to need some demolition to make it useable, it's an awful, desolate stretch of nothing, there aren't even any good buildings to reuse. Then at Stirton it gets okay again. I'm surprised that Main and King are as awful as they are, the houses south of King are fantastic. In any other city there would be tons of little places to serve them, in Hamilton it's a couple of highways.

[ScreamingViking]

Originally Posted by CaptainKirk

What you say is true but for a small stretch that is downtown. The majority of the eastern portion og King St could uses that uplift (and Main too, east of the delta)

That's why the one way portion of Main should be converted to two way. it's got too many lanes as it is. It's perfect for "helping out" with car traffic along King when LRT tracks get laid.

Agree on both points.

[drpgq]

I've argued before that the loop down to the new GO station is pointless and counterproductive. If eventually an A-line gets built for LRT then build the track then. This is purely driven by Metrolinx wanting to connect up with the new GO station. Just leave that connection as buses.

[SteelTown]

Hamilton city council voted in favour this evening to sign the memorandum of agreement with Metrolinx over light-rail transit.

[Jon Dalton]

Originally Posted by drpgq

I've argued before that the loop down to the new GO station is pointless and counterproductive. If eventually an A-line gets built for LRT then build the track then. This is purely driven by Metrolinx wanting to connect up with the new GO station. Just leave that connection as buses.

Yep. Connecting to Eastgate transit terminal is way more important. That's where all the Stoney Creek buses start. Nothing connects to the Queenston traffic circle. And for the next 10 years basically nothing connects to the West Harbour GO station.

[matt602]

Originally Posted by Jon Dalton

Yep. Connecting to Eastgate transit terminal is way more important. That's where all the Stoney Creek buses start. Nothing connects to the Queenston traffic circle. And for the next 10 years basically nothing connects to the West Harbour GO station.

I've always agreed with this. The portion from the traffic circle to Eastgate should have never been dropped for this almost completely pointless loop up to the West Harbour GO. Not having that connectivity is going to negatively impact early ridership numbers and throw the LRT's image askew. This is what happens when the government of Ontario gets involved in things...

[MalcolmTucker]

Maybe the Hammer could apply for Buildling Canada/Unnamed New Transit Fund for the last little phase, and prestochange-o! Leverage the funds.

[matt602]

Originally Posted by MalcolmTucker

Maybe the Hammer could apply for Buildling Canada/Unnamed New Transit Fund for the last little phase, and prestochange-o! Leverage the funds.

I think those funds would be better off going toward the new bus garage at this point.

[Beedok]

Maybe the city can buy up the rest of the block between Queenston and Main. Then they can turn that into some sort of transit hub?

That or point out to metrolinx they're missing out on linking the LRT to the Centennial Go station and get them all in a flurry about connectivity.

[fuller]

Has everybody already forgotten how the LRT route came to end at the Queenston Road traffic circle?

With sitting Ward 5 Councillor Chad Collins posturing to drive a stake through the heart of the project if it ran through his ward, the province, knowing that the route could easily be extended in another phase, truncated the work such that the implementation would only occur in wards with a supportive councillor, wards 1,2,3 and 4.

With budget already allocated by Metrolinx, the funds were reapplied to create the north-most section of the A-Line in those same receptive wards.

The Province has been trying to get these lines built since well before the Pan-Am Games but it is local politicians who have/had been keeping it from happening.

With such long timelines, by the time the first phase is underway Councillor Collins may have completed the transition to adulthood and his constituents will presumably be telling him that they want this valuable service extended into their area too.

[drpgq]

How much are the federal Liberals now promising for infrastructure over their term? Providing Hamilton gets its prorated share (equal to approximately 20% of whatever Toronto proper gets) that has to be enough to get to Eastgate and maybe the bus barn too.

I say the rest of council ignores the former video store clerk and the Spec get behind the idea as well.

[HillStreetBlues]

I'm all for council ignoring the video store clerk, but why would Hamilton's "share" of Metrolinx funding be 20%? HSR ridership has been fairly stagnant, and its council and populace resistant to embracing transit...why would Hamilton get a fifth of the funding Toronto does for transit?

[drpgq]

I'm personally partial to federal funding being handed out on a per capita basis, especially if it is stimulus funded by debt. Doesn't seem crazy to me and I would hope our MPs would fight for that.

[thistleclub]

‘Transit first’ LRT option would close part of King St. to cars
(Hamilton Spectator, Andrew Dreschel, Mar 21 2016)

Hamilton's LRT planners are working on a new "transit first" approach to the $1 billion project that puts greater emphasis on the right-of-way of trains.

The Spectator has learned that, among other features, the concept proposes to:

• Run LRT on two centre lanes throughout the McMaster University to Queenston Circle corridor except for downtown's International Village.

• Turn International Village from Walnut to Wellington streets into an LRT "Transit Mall" closed to other through traffic.

• Limit left turns to main intersections along the corridor, with side streets and private driveways restricted to right in, right out turns to minimize vehicles crossing the tracks.

• Make King Street two-way between Dundurn and the Delta.

• Create a single traffic lane running in each direction alongside LRT for much of the route.

• Segregate LRT from traffic with a vertical or mountable curb for emergency vehicles.

The upside to this "transit first" approach, according to leaked planning material, is a safer, faster more reliable system that improves the "people-versus-cars" carrying capacity of the 11-kilometre route.

The concept is also expected to promote greater transit ridership and social and economic benefits.

The downside includes increased property acquisition, decreased street parking, unspecified traffic impacts, and loading and delivery difficulties for commercial properties along the route.

Paul Johnson, the city's LRT co-coordinator, confirms the gist if not the specifics. He says "transit first" is being explored as a way to make the system operate more efficiently and "future proof" it for expected growth.

He defines "transit first" as design principles intended to make LRT as "rapid and reliable" as possible, a goal achieved by setting it apart from other traffic as much as viable. There is, Johnson says, a "clear reordering of priority" happening.

"Our design is trying to ensure rapid and reliable LRT and we're doing everything we can to look at the old design and new ways of operating to make that happen."

"We're discussing and finalizing how that's going to look."

He hopes to bring design recommendations to city council's LRT subcommittee in early May and start public consultations through late June and into the summer.

"The recommendations will be the best of what we've had on paper in the past and the best of what we're bringing forward to make this a rapid and reliable piece of work."

Johnson underlined that public input will be important in nailing down many of the details. "I can't stress this enough: We want the feedback."

He hopes to have a final design recommendation ready by September.


Read it in full here.

[Beedok]

The Calgary street with the C-Train still had a level of commercial activity from what I saw, so it shouldn't be too big a deal.

[BaconPoutine]

There's going to be a huge shift of traffic to Cannon St I guess... Not exactly the best plan as far as I'm concerned.

I'm sure that the International Village business owners will be displeased as well.